Energetic start leads Mavs to victory on senior night

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Mavericks defeated the Davis Pirates 47-24 Thursday in their final home meet of the season. Head Coach Jose Tanguma was happy to see his seniors recognized before the dual began.   

“It's my fourth year as a coach,” Tanguma said. “I'm going to miss them. I enjoyed coaching those wrestlers since they were freshmen, and to see how far they’ve come, now to their senior year, I'm going to miss them, but I'm excited for their future, and what it holds for them.”  

The Mavs started quick like Tanguma wanted, winning their first five matches via pinfall or technical fall. While Davis earned pinfalls throughout the night, Moses Lake steadily built their lead. Cristian Ramos won via a 3-1 decision in the 285-lb weight class to earn the Mavericks a 47-24 win Thursday.   

“I saw a lot of good things. I talked to the guys all this week, really focusing on our offense. I told the team, ‘Let's focus on takedowns,’ and that was the goal today, and a lot of guys did that. They've got a bunch of takedowns that we wanted,” Tanguma said.   

Tanguma said it all started with Darien Prescott’s energy in the first match of the night. Prescott was systematic in his approach, consistently taking down his opponent and releasing his grapple for another opportunity at a takedown. Prescott mounted up the points to a 24-8 match lead, which was good enough for a technical fall and five points for the Mavs.   

“He really set the pace for the team, and they got the guys fired up, and they went out there with a lot of energy coming out too,” Tanguma said.   

After Jose Villafana also earned a win via technical fall, Ian Garza and Vincent Hunt earned pinfall wins in the 120-lb and 126-lb weight class. Owen Martel earned a sudden victory after being the first to earn a takedown in overtime. Suddenly, the Mavericks led 25-0.   

Davis found pinfall wins in the 138-lb and 150-lb class, but Moses Lake still carried the momentum throughout the night. With a 33-12 lead, Conner Brosnahan earned a 16-0 technical fall win in the 165-lb weight class, which officially secured the dual victory for the Mavericks.   

From there, Moses Lake added to their score with wins by Eli Anderson and Cristian Ramos. With the win Thursday, Tanguma feels his team is taking the right steps forward as the postseason creeps over the horizon.   

“I just had to keep the guy's mindset on track. Those two duels that we lost doesn't mean much right now for us. Our main goal is postseason,” he said.

The Mavericks hit the road Saturday to compete in a tournament at Kittitas High School. Results for the tournament were not available at the time of press. Moses Lake finishes their regular season on the road against Sunnyside on Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. and Wenatchee for another tournament on Feb. 7 at 11 a.m.  

RESULTS:  

106: Darien Prescott (MLHS) over Quinton Whitesell (Davis), technical fall 24-8  

113: Jose Villafana (MLHS) over Raiden Ratliff (Davis), technical fall 20-5  

120: Ian Garza (MLHS) over Ezekiel Santoy (Davis), pinfall   

126: Vincent Hunt (MLHS) over Joaquin Barajas (Davis), pinfall   

132: Owen Martel (MLHS) over Nathaniel Ornelas Mireles (Davis), sudden victory 16-13  

138: Roman Santoy (Davis) over Zachy Villasenor (MLHS), pinfall   

144: Duane Zamora (MLHS) over Benjamin Barajas (Davis), technical tall 19-4  

150: Joshua Laws (Davis) over Xzavier Rodriguez (MLHS), pinfall   

157: Ian Anderson (MLHS) over Joaquin Santoy (Davis), decision 7-3  

165: Conner Brosnahan (MLHS) over Ramon Partida (Davis), technical fall 16-0  

175: Connor McGovern (Davis) over Azaiha Cruz (MLHS), pinfall   

190: Jaime Barajas (Davis) over Jeremiah Acevedo (MLHS), pinfall  

215: Eli Anderson (MLHS) over Xzavier Espino Sanchez (Davis), pinfall  

285: Cristian Ramos (MLHS) over To’o Grover (Davis), decision 3-1  

    The Mavericks’ Jose Villafana, in grey, attempts to flip his opponent over and take control on the mat. Villafana earned a 20-5 technical fall victory Thursday.
  

    Vincent Hunt, right, controls his opponent on the mat by tying up his wrists in a hold. Hunt earned a pinfall victory Thursday.
  

    MLHS’s Duane Zamora, left, eyes his opponent at the beginning of their match. Zamora earned multiple takedowns before earning a 19-4 technical fall victory Thursday.
  

    The Moses Lake boys wrestling Head Coach Jose Tanguma, black shirt, cheers on his team as they battle with Davis Thursday. Tanguma said he will miss the seniors next season. Ian Anderson and Ian Garza have been with Tanguma since he became their coach four years ago.